Gas heater



Feb. 20, 1934. R. F CUYLER El AL GAS HEATER Original Filed Dec. 6, 19502 Sheets-Sheet l Feb. 20, 1934. R. F. CUYLER Er AL GAS HEATER OriginalFiled Dec. 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 H M- Q Alba gvvu RF. Cuyler F. M.Hartford (Mammy Patented Feb. 20, 1934 GAS HEATER Robert F. Guyler,Athens, and Frank M. Hartford, Columbus, Ohio, assignors to Ray-GCorporation, Athens, Ohio, a corporation of bio Application December 6,1930. Serial No. 500,584 Renewed December 28, 1933 1 Claim. (01. 126-90)This invention relates to improvements in gas heaters of the typegenerally employed for room heating service and has particular referenceto that type of gas heater utilizing a plurality of refractoryforaminated heat radiating elements supported above a burner structureand mounted in conjunction with a refractory backing member constitutinga fire-brick. In the operation of heaters of this type, the combustionof the burner gases results in heating the radiant or glower elements totemperatures where the latter become substantially incandescent with theresult that the intense heat thereby developed is radiated outwardlyfrom said elements and the firebrick through the substantially openfront of the heater into the room areas to be heated.

We have found that in heaters of this general category, a largepercentage of the developed heat remains unutilized from the standpointof its room heating capacity and passes wastefully to the outlet flue ofthe heater and it is therefore anoutstanding object of the presentinvention to provide a gas heater, of the radiant or glower type, withan improved heat exchanger which is mounted stationarily in the frame orcasing of the heater above the fire-brick and radiant elements, andwhich heat exchanger is formed to provide a plurality of spacedvertically arranged tubes, provided. with thin metal walls,

through which the products of combustion, fol

lowing discharge from the radiant elementspass in a generally upwarddirection before reaching the vent or outlet flue, the casing of theheater being further constructed to provide for the positive circulationof room air across and in contact with the exterior surfaces of saidtubes, whereby to raise the temperature of the room air, remove heatfrom the waste products of combustion and efiiciently use the thusheated air for 40 room heating purposes.

It is another object of the invention to provide a heater of thecharacter specified with a backing or refractory fire-brick, in whichthe radiant or glower elements are mounted, with a plurality of passagesin the upper portion thereof, which passages provide for the free escapeof the products of combustion from the upper portions of the radiant orglower elements and the flow of such products of combustion into thesuperposed heat exchanger.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a heater of thecharacter set forth which shall be of simple and improved constructionand one which shall be both efficient and economical when employed forroom heating purposes.

tion consists in the novel features of construction,

combination of elements and arrangements of parts hereinafter fullydescribed and pointed out in the appended claim.

In the annexed drawings:

Fig. l is a view in vertical section taken through a gasheaterconstructed in accordance with the present invention,

.Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken through the heater on theplane indicated by the line 2--2 of Fig. 1, V

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the plane disclosed bythe line 3-3 of Fig. 1, disclosing more particularly the formation ofthe heat exchanger-tubes, and

Fig. 4 is a detail view of the burner mechanism.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the numeral 1 designatesthe improved heater comprising the present invention in its entirety.This heater is formed to embody a casing which, in the specificembodiment of the invention under consideration, comprises a pluralityof vertically arranged leg members 2, disposed in the corners of thecasing and formed in this instance from angle irons. Secured to theseleg members are front, back and side walls 3, 4 and 5 respectively, thelatter walls being preferably formed, though not necessarily, from sheetmetal. a v

Mounted in the bottom of the heater is a burner mechanism A. This burnermechanism maybe one of several forms utilized in heaters of thischaracter. In the form thereof depicted in the drawings, the burnermechanism comprises a gas supplymanifold 6 supported horizontally in thelower portion of the heater. This manifold is provided with a regulatingvalve '7 for governing gas flow therethrough from a suitable source ofsupply. At longitudinal intervals the upper portion of the manifold isprovided with outlet orifices 8, preferably of fixed diameter. Theseorifices are arranged in vertical registration with and are slightlyspaced from the lower ends of a plurality of vertical mixing tubes 9into which the gas streams from the orifices 8 are discharged and mixedwith air drawn in to the lower portions of the tubes from theatmosphere. A highly combustible mixture is thus produced which passesupwardly through said tubes into a header 10, in this instanceintegrally formed with the tubes 9. The header 10 is suspended from themember 12 which is secured to the side walls 5 of the heater casing. Themember 12 is preferably in the form of a metallic casting and its uppersurface receives and effects the support of a clay refractory memberordinarily known as the fire-brick or fire-back, which is designated bythe numeral 13. Supported on the member 12 in front of the fire-brick 13is a row of vertically arranged radiant or glower elements 14 which, asusual, are formed from a refractory material such as burnt clay and areeach of an open foraminated construction providing freely for thepassage of air and burning gases therethrough. The upper end of each ofthe elements 14 is provided with a stud 15 which is loosely receivablewithin a pocket 16 formed in the overhanging upper portion 17 of thefire-brick, whereby the radiants are supported in vertical order inrelation to the fire-brick and yet may be individually removed andreplaced whenever necessary. The header 10 is provided with a pluralityof gas outlets 18 arranged in registration with the lower portions ofeach of the radiant elements 14, whereby when the valve 7 is open, ahighly combustible mixture is delivered into the interior of each ofsaid radiant elements, where active combustion at high temperature ofthe mixture takes place. These resulting high temperatures causes theradiant elements to assume a state of incandescence and also the shortstuds 19 formed on the front wall or surface of the fire-brick 13. Dueto the body of the fire-brick 13, the heat thus developed is to a verylarge extent radiated outwardly or forwardly through the opening 20provided in the front wall 3 into desired room areas in a mannercustomary in heaters of this variety. In this instance, the manifold 6is supported by being suspended as at 21 from the lower portions of themixing tubes 9.

Experience has disclosed that in the operation of radiant gas heaters ofthis general construction, a large proportion of the generated heat isnot utilized but escapes through the outlet flue. In order to morecompletely utilize the developed heat in a gas heater of this character,the present invention provides the casing of the heater, at a positionabove the burner and radiant mechanism, with an improved heat exchanger,indicated generally by the letter B which is so con structed andpositioned as to provide for the removal of the heat remaining in thegases of combustion following discharge from the radiant elements andthe transfer of such heat units to the air currents in the room in whichthe heater is stationed. In the attainment of this and ancillaryobjects, the heater casing is provided above the radiant elements withspaced stationary upper and lower tube supporting plates 22 and 23respectively, the said plates having their marginal portions secured tothe walls 3, 4 and 5 of the casing. The said plates are provided with aplurality of elongated slots 24 which are reenforced by marginal ribs25, and engaging with the ribs 25 and stationarily positioned betweenthe plates 22 and 23 are vertically extending, parallel, relativelyspaced sheet metal tubes 26 which produces a cross sectional area, asshown in Fig. 3, corresponding to the formation of the slots formed inthe plates 22 and 23. The fire-brick 13 in this heater is formedcontiguous to its upper portion with a plurality of passages 2'7 whichlead from the top of the radiant-s 14 to the rear of the upper portionof the fire-brick, and through these passages free and uninterruptedpassage of products of combustion pass in a generally upward direction,as disclosed by the arrows in Fig. 2. The passages .27 particularlyserve to prevent trapping the products of combustion in the upperportion of the fire-brick and provide for the free passage of the highlyheated gases from the radiant elements into the upper portion of theradiant chamber 28 formed in said heater. Since the chamber 28 is inopen communication with the tubes 26 which are disposed above thechamber, the waste gases of combustion pass rapidly from the chamber 28and upwardly through said tubes, contacting with the walls of the tubesto front wall 3 of the heater casing, in registration with the upperportions of the tubes 26, is formed with a corresponding opening 33. Bythis arrangement air is drawn from the room into the heater casing byway of the opening 32 and contacts with the heated walls of the tubes26, raising the temperature of the air before its discharge into theroom by way of the outlet opening 33. The passage of this air around thetubes 26 may be suitably controlled by any desired arrangement ofbafiies in order to control the time factor involved in the heating ofthe air. In this instance, one of such bafiies has been disclosed at 34and is used to guide the air in an outward direction through the opening33. If desired, the walls of the tubes 26 may be provided withcorrugations or fins to increase the heat radiating surface thereof andwe reserve the right to employ such variations in construction in thevarious commercial adaptations of our heater designs.

In view of the foregoing it will be seen that the present inventionprovides a gas heater of the radiant type wherein full utilization ofthe generated heat for room heating purposes is secured. In this respectthe heater provides for the delivery of a maximum quantity of heat to agiven room area without increasing the quantity of fuel consumed overthe ordinary forms of radiant heaters. The heat exchanger is ofparticularly efiicient design in the matter of transferring heatremaining in the waste gases to the air passing over the exteriorsurfaces 01 its tubes and furthermore, due to the provision of thepassages 27 in the fire-brick, there will be no trapping oi the wastegases around the radiant elements, since such gases after traversing theradiant elements pass without restriction through the passages 27, theradiant chamber 28 and thence through the thin walled tubes 26 to thevent connection. While there has been described what is assumed to bethe preferred embodiment of the invention, nevertheless it will beunderstood that we do not limit ourselves to the specific structuraldetails set forth but reserve the right to employ such modifications andvariations thereof in the various commercial forms of our heater thatmay be said to fall fairly in the scope of the following claim.

What is claimed is:

In combination with a gas heater of the radiant glower type, wherein theheater compartment is left open at its upper end, a casing closing theupper end of said compartment, said casing including upper and lowerwalls formed with regfront and rear walls of said casing being providedwith openings for the passage of air over the exterior surfaces of saidtubes, and curved bafiie plates arranged between said tubes fordirecting the air passing through said openings towards the front ofsaid casing.

ROBERT F. CUYLER. FRANK M. HARTFORD.

